The Knack, Cindy Alexander   8/21/2005
Warner Park, Woodland Hills, General Seating

The Knack

The Ilford-spawned quartet the Knack (not to be confused with the late-'70s American band of that name) existed for three years, and cut a half-dozen singles for English Decca and Pye Records' Piccadilly subsidiary. They never managed to get a chart placement, despite a valiant attempt at a cover of a Kinks song ("Who'll Be the Next in Line") with Larry Page producing for their debut. From those relatively tough, punk-ish influences, the group evolved into more of a mod-ish outfit by 1966, when they'd jumped to Piccadilly, with some serious interest in folk-rock -- they made a specialty out of covering Lovin' Spoonful tracks such as "Younger Girl" and "Did You Ever Have to Make Up Your Mind," the latter with some cool fuzzed out guitar from Adrian Gurvitz. The Knack even tried the German gambit that had worked to sustain various English outfits that couldn't get a hearing at home, but somehow they never managed to catch on playing a market that seemingly embraced (at least for a short time) every English-speaking band that went there. Guitarist/singer Adrian Gurvitz (then known as Adrian Gurvitz-Curtis); his brother, bassist/singer Paul Gurvitz; and drummer Louis Farrell parted with Tim Mycroft and formed the much harder rocking trio Gun. That band scored a number-eight British hit with "Race With the Devil," while Mycroft became a member of Sounds Nice, who cut sides for Parlophone Records in the late '60s.

Cindy Alexander

Cindy Alexander is a singer-songwriter based in Sherman Oaks CA, who is the winner of the Los Angeles Music Award for Best Songwriter. Compared to Sarah McLachlan, Alanis and Sheryl Crow, Cindy has developed her own sultry style. Her organic pop sounds have great cross-over appeal.

Starting at the age of 6 Cindy took up piano lessons and was encouraged to sing by her grandmother who was a music teacher. After tasting success in various plays and musicals Cindy has returned to her true love, music. Says Cindy, "I found it so much more satisfying to write and perform my own material, and be myself." 1999 saw Alexander release her debut CD See Red which she describes as, "A collection of demos that I wrote over a three year period. It is a very personal record. Each song is like a Polaroid of a particular point in my life." One song that shines on the “Carnival Junkie” album (fall 2000) is “Heaven Knows.” Cindy croons these beautiful lyrics of love with a touch of sadness. Singing backup on this track is Kevin Montgomery, who you will get to know shortly as he will be an upcoming feature artist here at Dmusic. In addition to singing backup Kevin also produced "Heaven Knows" and "Carnival Junkie." Cindy’s sensitive writing style will appeal to everyone. I’ll bet that in each song you can find something that you can relate to on some level. Another stunning track off the Carnival Junkie CD is “Prophet.” In this stripped down sonnet you get just Cindy and her piano. This intimate setting makes you feel like you are privileged to feel her most private emotions. You get a sense of her vulnerability through her expressive voice. “Joei” is a great example of Alexander’s whimsical writing style. About this track Cindy says, “It's a true story, except for the ending. I only had her die for the sake of drama. FAQ: What is a "Second Hand Girlfriend" Answer: Well kids, it's a girl who sleeps with her boyfriend's best friend.”